Welcome to Skagit County
November 16th, 2011
Skagit County proposes
to declare entire Samish Watershed a Marine Recovery Area
SKAGIT COUNTY - Skagit County
recently announced that it is proposing code changes to declare the entire Samish
Watershed a Marine Recovery Area. This means the Skagit County Public Health
Department will notify everyone in the Samish Watershed that they need a current
on-site sewage (septic) system inspection. Conventional gravity septic systems
must be inspected every three years; all others need annual inspections. If
a property owner does not get an inspection done in time, they may receive a
$75 per day fine.
Most of the Samish Watershed was declared a Marine Recovery Area in 2008; however,
a portion of the Watershed did not have enough residences to be considered a
threat to water quality. With the current attention to cleaning up the entire
Samish Watershed, it is important for every septic system owner to have their
septic system inspected by a certified operations and maintenance specialist.
On December 13, 2011, at 1:30 p.m., there will be a public hearing in the Skagit
County Commissioners Hearing Room (1800 Continental Place, Mount Vernon). Written
comments may be submitted to Corinne Story, Skagit County Public Health, 700
South 2nd, Room 301, Mount Vernon, Washington, prior to
December 9, 2011. Public comments will also be accepted at the public hearing.
e-mail correspondence will not be accepted.
Additional information and documents related to this proposed classification
are available at www.skagitcounty.net/health.
For more information, contact Environmental Public Health Manager Corinne Story
at corinnes@co.skagit.wa.us or
at (360) 336-9380, ext. 5459.